Senior Dispensing Assistant

Candino CA; Colchester; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent healthcare organization in Colchester is looking for Senior Dispensing Assistants to join their Pharmacy team. Responsibilities include dispensing for inpatients and outpatients, ensuring medications are labeled accurately, and maintaining compliance with pharmacy procedures. The ideal candidate must have pharmacy experience and relevant qualifications. This role offers a competitive salary and opportunities for professional development.

Benefits

Generous pension scheme

Flexible working options

NHS discounts

Qualifications

• Previous experience of working in pharmacy (retail/hospital).
• Basic Secondary Education in relevant subjects required.

Responsibilities

• Dispense for inpatients and outpatients following standard procedures.
• Provide a re-stocking service of pharmaceutical products.
• Operate the cash till and process payments.

Skills

Pharmacy experience

Use of computers

Education

Basic Secondary Education - 'O' level/GCSE English, Maths & Science Grade C/4 or above

NVQ Pharmacy Services Level 2

Job description

Overview

Have you got the enthusiasm to take up the challenge of this permanent post? We are looking for Senior Dispensing Assistants to join our Pharmacy team. You will work within most areas of the ESNEFT Pharmaceutical Service based at Colchester Hospital, providing dispensing support to qualified staff.

Duties will include dispensing for in-patients, outpatients and controlled drugs following standard procedures; a re-stocking service of pharmaceutical products to wards and departments.

Pharmacy experience is essential and a formal qualification is desirable, e.g. NVQ Level 2 or equivalent.

Formal Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holiday commitments are mandatory and will be on a rostered basis.

Please note this position is not eligible for a Health and Social Care Visa and does not meet the requirements for sponsorship for a Skilled Worker visa.

Details about our pharmacy service - https://esneft.pagetiger.com/buqzfou/1

Main duties

• To dispense for inpatients and outpatients by calculating appropriate dosage and quantities required against prescriptions/requisitions, following departmental Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• To ensure that all customers receive the appropriate medicine in the correct form and in a timely manner.
• To ensure that all medicines are labelled and packaged appropriately, and all relevant patient information and compliance aids/sundries are supplied.
• To dispense controlled drugs for ward stock and named patients, following all relevant Pharmacy procedures and legal requirements.
• To perform a self-check on all dispensed items to ensure accuracy and quality prior to placing the item in the designated area for final checking.
• To receive in prescriptions from a wide range of outpatient clients and use listening and questioning skills to obtain appropriate information to enable effective service provision.
• To operate the cash till and debit/credit card machine to take payment for prescriptions.
• To ensure that the declaration of payment/exemption on outpatient prescriptions has been correctly filled in and clearly endorsed with grounds for exemption if a fee is not paid.
• To sell over the counter products under the supervision of a pharmacist.

About Us

We are ESNEFT and we provide hospital and community health services to almost one million people across east Suffolk and north Essex. Our dedicated staff deliver care from acute hospitals in Colchester and Ipswich, community hospitals, surgeries, community clinics and in patients' own homes. We are one of the largest NHS organisations in England, employing more than 12,000 staff. We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options. Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services. Our philosophy is that Time Matters to everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients. We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what’s widely regarded as the world’s best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients. If you are passionate about patient care and want to develop your skills and knowledge, then we want to hear from you. Find out about living and working here - www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkPu7HphU8A

Details

• Date posted: 05 September 2025
• Pay scheme: Agenda for change
• Band: Band 3
• Salary: £24,937 to £26,598 a year per annum pro rata
• Contract: Permanent
• Working pattern: Full-time, Part-time
• Reference number: 432-HR678-25
• Job locations: Colchester Hospital, Turner Road, Colchester, CO45JL

Job Description

Job responsibilities: For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.

Person Specification

Experience

• Previous experience of working in pharmacy (retail/hospital)
• Use of computers

Qualifications

• Basic Secondary Education - \'O\' level/GCSE English, Maths & Science Grade C/4 or above

Desirable

• NVQ Pharmacy Services Level 2 - optional units: relevant to pharmacy practice area or equivalent.

Knowledge

• Confidentiality issues working within pharmacy and on wards

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Employer details

Employer name: East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Colchester Hospital, Turner Road, Colchester, CO45JL
Employer's website: https://www.esneft.nhs.uk/